Days after death-row convict Balwant Singh Rajoana wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an immediate decision on his long-pending mercy petition, Akal Takht acting jathedar Giani Kuldeep Singh Gargaj and Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) president Harjinder Singh Dhami met him at Patiala Central Jail on Tuesday.
The proposal, however, was not implemented. Rajoana, who was sentenced to death for his role in the 1995 assassination of then Punjab chief minister Beant Singh, has spent more than 31 years in prison, including nearly two decades on death row. In a five-page letter dated September 17, Rajoana urged the PM to take a final decision on his mercy petition, which has remained pending for several years. He said he had spent about 20 years facing the prospect of execution and wanted an end to the prolonged uncertainty. His execution, scheduled for March 2012, was stayed after the SGPC filed a mercy petition on his behalf before the President. In September 2019, the Union home ministry proposed commuting Rajoana’s death sentence to life imprisonment as part of a special remission proposal concerning certain Sikh prisoners.
Rajoana made it clear during the meeting that he was not seeking mercy or a pardon but wanted a final decision on the petition, according to Giani Gargaj.
The Akal Takht acting jathedar said that if the government failed to take a timely decision on Rajoana’s case, a meeting of the five Sikh high priests would be convened to determine the next course of action in accordance with Rajoana’s stated position. Dhami said Rajoana had specifically sought an early disposal of the SGPC-filed petition and had reiterated that he was not seeking an apology for his actions.
